Quality Magazine

Check out the April 2020 edition of Quality: Quality Professional of the Year, color management, understanding the role of load cells, automation and much more!

Meet Kathy Lyall, our 2020 Quality Professional of the Year

The Quality Leader

Michelle Bangert

April 1, 2020

One Comment

The problem would go away only to return every few months. The manufacturing mystery continued for about seven months, with each failure costing $26 in raw material alone.

Understanding the Role of Load Cells in Force Measurement

This will help you choose the most appropriate load cell for your application.

James M. Clinton

April 1, 2020

One Comment

Load cells are an integral part in a force measurement system. Understanding load cell terminology, common sizing techniques, and how they function will help you choose the most appropriate load cell for your application, which will help prevent accidental damage due to an incorrect selection.

When it Comes to Quality, Make it Easy for Your Team to Do the Right Thing

jdan@plex.com

John Dancoe

April 1, 2020

No Comments

If you’re in manufacturing, no matter the industry, quality is top of mind. It must be, or you won’t be in business long. Yet, with all the focus, there are big misses all the time in companies large and small, which leads to an interesting question: If quality gets so much attention, why are recalls still increasing? Further, what can we do about it?

Color Management 101: The Latest Technology and Techniques

Whether you are first introducing color control to your quality process or you are managing an existing framework, here’s what to know.

Earl Balthazar

April 1, 2020

No Comments

Uniformity has long been associated with quality perception, and color can be one of the most striking visual giveaways if products are inconsistent. As a result, consumers are more likely to associate these color flaws with inferior, low-quality products or brands.

Fix It or Fling It?

Keep such a recovery program cheap and simple.

Hill Cox

April 8, 2020

No Comments

As a supplier of all types of measuring instruments, we are regularly asked to quote the cost of repairing some of them. In days gone by, it was a common service offered by many in the industry but modern technology has changed all that while increasing the amount of garbage to the local landfill. Marketing and manufacturing are both to blame.

Face of Quality

Managing a Key Asset

No matter the size of the business, people are the #1 asset.

Jim L. Smith

April 8, 2020

No Comments

With so much focus on customers, companies can lose sight of their most valued asset—their people—and the critical roles they play in the success of their organizations. Organizations are the employees, and customer service and quality are dependent on these skilled, motivated people.

Evolving Quality Processes Propel Growth

All inspectors are initially trained in first article inspection and then on assembly, sheet metal, and CMM inspection.

Mari Luke

April 8, 2020

No Comments

Mike Terrell is the quality assurance manager at B&B Airparts Inc., a machine shop that specializes in manufacturing high precision parts for aerospace OEMs. B&B Airparts Inc. has been in business for over twenty years, offering machining, sheet metal fabrication, and assembly capabilities.

Multi-Axis Motion Controller Accelerates Gear Testing

The testing can be used in a pre-production environment as companies evaluate changes in materials designed to improve the characteristics of end products.

Reid Bollinger

April 8, 2020

No Comments

Materials testing and characterization is often a lengthy process. It can take more than a year and billions of testing cycles for a manufacturer to characterize the properties of a new metal alloy to be used in a critical application, such as a component of an automotive or jet engine.

Nondestructive Inspection of Automotive Computers

As with the testing and evaluation of raw materials, controlling the quality of electronic devices is essential

Satoshi Iguchi Akane Garner

April 8, 2020

No Comments

In the automotive industry, quality control/assurance has often focused on the physical testing and evaluation of raw materials and finished products. From a safety perspective, it is imperative that the strength of these materials and products meets established standards. Tensile, compression, bending and hardness tests are used for these evaluations.

XRF coating thickness measurement instrument

The Right Detector

XRF systems use one of several types of detectors.

Zach Dismukes

April 4, 2020

No Comments

Electroless nickel (EN) is industry’s most common plated finish. It’s widely used for applications that demand wear resistance, hardness and corrosion protection—particularly if parts have complex geometries. It is also used in PCB manufacturing within a process known as ENIG, electroless nickel immersion gold.

X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Frequently Asked Questions

You can point an XRF analyzer at almost anything and get a result.

Ted Shields Sr.

April 8, 2020

No Comments

When we talk to customers who are interested in learning more about XRF, there are some questions that we answer all the time. Check out some of the most frequently asked questions and their answers below.

Five Things You Didn’t Know Eddy Currents Could Inspect

Eddy current testing has typically been employed for surface and tubing inspections, but it can be employed for much more.

Olivier Bellavance

April 1, 2020

One Comment

Eddy current testing (ECT) is an electromagnetic testing technique used to inspect non-ferromagnetic materials, and eddy current array (ECA) is an advanced form of ECT that allows efficient scanning over larger areas.

Latest Developments in Borescope Technology: Dual Camera Modules

Breakthroughs in materials, electronics and manufacturing techniques have led to innovations that have greatly expanded the capabilities of borescopes.

Zack Wessels

April 1, 2020

5 Comments

Of all the various NDT disciplines, it is safe to say that remote visual inspection (RVI) is the one most widely used across all industries. While radiography and ultrasonic testing, for example, are essential in certain situations and applications, there is no real substitute for being able to visually inspect and monitor the condition of internal components.

Quality in Automation > Automation 101

Automation for Beginners and Experts

Whether a newcomer or grizzled expert, it never hurts to brush up on the fundamentals of automation and robotics.

Darryl Seland

April 6, 2020

One Comment

At its simplest, automation means to make something automatic. In manufacturing, whether describing a single device or an entire system or process, automation refers to performing one or many tasks autonomously with minimal or even no human interaction in a manufacturing or production environment.

Quality in Automation > Robotics 101

The Details of Vision Guided Robotics

Vision guided robotics today encompasses all the technologies needed to recognize, process and handle objects based upon visual data.

Keith Vozel

April 6, 2020

No Comments

The renewed interest for vision guided robotics (VGR) for the manufacturing of parts and packaging of goods is much in part to the number of advances in sophisticated technologies over the last decade.

Quality in Automation > Trends

The Latest Trends on the Shop Floor

Automation has made closed-loop metrology systems, nondestructive testing and productivity increasingly accessible.

Genevieve Diesing

April 6, 2020

One Comment

As developments in machine learning and the Internet of Things (IoT) impact how manufacturers run their businesses, automation can support these changes and boost productivity.

Quality in Automation > Robotics

The Need for 3D Imaging Performance Standards for Robotic Assembly

NIST is working with the 3D imaging industry to develop performance standards for systems that can be used for robotic assembly applications.

Kamel S. Saidi

April 6, 2020

One Comment

Manufacturing often involves the fabrication of products that are made up of multiple smaller parts or components. Assembling these parts into finished products can be complex and labor intensive.

Quality in Automation > Inspection

How to Automate your Inspection Process

New sensors, mobile systems and thorough communication can help manufacturers overcome previous hurdles.

Genevieve Diesing

April 4, 2020

No Comments

Manufacturing is becoming automated on a broad scale. The technology enables manufacturers to affordably boost their throughput, improve quality and become nimbler as they respond to customer demands. Ultimately, this helps them become more efficient.

Quality in Automation > Collaborative Robots

Collaborative Robots Improve Quality

With the growth of collaborative robots, manufacturers gain a valuable tool.

Michelle Bangert

April 4, 2020

No Comments

Robots in manufacturing is not a new idea. But today an increasing number of collaborative robots are joining the ranks, working alongside their human coworkers.

Quality in Automation > AI

Artificial Intelligence Meets Quality

It’s just one of the tools available for today’s smart manufacturing.

Michelle Bangert

April 4, 2020

3 Comments

Artificial intelligence is here, and it is can improve quality in a number of ways. It can prevent bad parts from being made, discover trends, and monitor machine performance.

Special Section: Quality in Automation > Trends

5 Automation Trends

Jeff Burnstein

April 1, 2020

No Comments

Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) are the latest innovation that have been transforming traditional robot tasks through increased flexibility and diversified applications, including their unique ability to navigate in an uncontrolled environment with a higher level of understanding.

In this webinar, you’ll learn how innovative systems use measurement and instrument functionality data to improve production rates, enhance accuracy and quality, and provide critical, real-time information about the condition and status of production machines.

It’s important to select and use the right tolerancing method. Attend to learn how to ensure color consistency within a production run as well as ways to minimize lot-to-lot variability.